Thursday, 29 August 2013

Knitting is big in Ladakh, they call it Larchis. We have returned after 5 months of being away and are feeling rather confused, so it was very good to look at the Pantry Violet website and still see that all of you keep on sewing and knitting. We met a lovely lady called Angmo, who has one of the hardest lives I have come across and has the sweetest disposition throughout it all. Angmo loves to knit and showed me a great deal of her handiwork including all these gorgeous bonnets she had made for her little boy Karma Jigmed. I asked if we could peg them on the line on top of her mud brick house that has no running water or electricity and gets down to minus 50 for three months in the winter. Angmo was delighted. It reminded me of Briancon and hanging all our flowers on the line.
Ladies of the world clearly are united - through knitting and sewing.

About Us

"Pantry Violets" are women who met by chance in the Dordogne in France. We came from many different places and walks of life with as many different experiences - each of us knowing that for some reason we needed to be there. Through the course of 6 days, we swam in a salt water pool, ate magnificent food prepared by our hosts, strolled the beautiful grounds, stitched as it drizzled and danced in the sun, rummaged through brocantes, shared stories and ideas, secrets and dreams. We found friendship, inspiration, laughter, tears, simplicity, peace and a strong common bond. We embraced the creative spirit we found in one another and allowed our own to soar. It came to be much more than a workshop. We found new "life long" friends and true, kindred spirits.

We have created this blog to challenge and inspire one another and to continue to look at life and creativity in a whole new way, from a different perspective. We will continue to share our thoughts and feelings and bring our affection for each other to this venue.

Our enduring thanks to Julie Arkell for bringing us together for the little "slice of heaven" we experienced and for her enthusiasm in our creations. We are beyond grateful for her generosity and her willingness to share her knowledge, imagination and graceful spirit.

We also thank Katie, Mike, Carol and Dave for absolutely everything they did for us and for the beauty they live with each day that they so easily shared with us.